DOI: 10.21276/sasjs.2018.4.10.11

Pages: 219-220

Drug-induced gingival hypertrophy is a well-documented side effect of some pharmacologic agents, including calcium channel blockers (CCBs), phenytoin, and cyclosporine. Amlodipine, a long-acting CCB, is a commonly used hypertension drug. Here we describe a case of amlodipine-induced massive gingival hyperplasia. The prevalence of amlodipine-induced gingival overgrowth was reported to be 3.3%. The underlying mechanism of gingival enlargement still remains to be fully understood. However, two main inflammatory and non-inflammatory pathways have already been suggested. Untreated gingival hypertrophy might lead to bleeding, infection, abscess, ulceration, cosmetic deficiency, and functional difficulty. Treatment is generally targeted on drug substitution and effective control of local inflammatory factors such as plaque and calculus. When these measures fail to cause resolution of the enlargement, surgical intervention is recommended.